Ladettes in cancer warning

Hundreds more young women will develop mouth and throat cancer because of the growing 'ladette' culture of heavy smoking and drinking, doctors say.

Hospitals have traditionally seen more such cases among men, with 3,150 diagnosed last year compared to 350 women.

But women are catching up, and the ladette culture of binge-drinking and smoking associated with celebrities such as DJs Zoe Ball and Sara Cox is being blamed.

Among those most at risk are the rising number of women who work in high pressure jobs and turn to drink and cigarettes to let off steam.

Nearly half of all mouth and throat cancers are associated with heavy drinking. Smoking increases the risk.

Consultant Shaun Jackson, a leading head and neck cancer surgeon at University Hospital, Aintree, Merseyside, said: 'Head cancer victims are getting younger and we are seeing more women in their 40s with signs of the disease.

'We're expecting to see hundreds more women in the next 15 years because it has become socially acceptable for women to keep up with men in the amount they drink and smoke. But their health will suffer.

'Their size means the effects of alcohol are stronger and their hormones also make it harder to process alcohol.'

The warning comes just days after 500 senior doctors petitioned Downing Street seeking official health warnings on all drinks in the face of dramatic rises in alcohol-related illnesses in young adults.

Government guidance is that 'safe' levels of alcohol for women are 21 units a week, with a unit being a glass of wine, half a pint of beer or a measure of spirits.

Experts are also concerned at the number of women who consume many of their units of alcohol in weekend binges.

Among 18 to 24-year- olds, twice as many women as men are drinking at or above dangerous levels.